Puzzled Jouney
by Milennium Phoenix
Summary: Five millennia ago, the 7 Millennium Items were created for power, but something that many people don't realize is that there was an eighth created long after the originals by the Pharaoh Atem himself. What happens when Yugi's best friend, Ava, is handed this unique treasure? Part One of four of the Puzzled Love saga.
1. Blue-Eyed Home Wrecker

**Welcome to my first ever Yu-Gi-Oh! story. This is rated T for language, violence, and whatever the hell else I put in. It will be a slow burn love story (a romance where the love takes a considerable amount of time to build up for those of you who don't know what that means), but it is definitely worth it. This story will make you laugh, rage, and cry if you have any feelings toward Yami Yugi. Without further ado, here is the first chapter of "Puzzled Journey". **

Rain pattered noisily against the window pane of the Game Shop as a young man with tri-colored spiky hair and an ornate pyramid dangling from his neck from a smooth rope, played Duel Monsters with a woman, not too much younger than himself, who was chewing her lower lip in thought as she calculated her next move. He was down to 200 life points while she had 500. They'd been dueling for well over an hour, focused and intent on defeating the other. The young woman drew a card from her deck and smiled, believing that she had the game in the bag.

"I'm going to combine my Dark Magician Girl and my Thunder Dragon with Polymerization to create Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight with an attack power of 2600. Say goodbye to your Dark Magician, Yugi!" she said with a proud and satisfied grin, placing her cards down on the table in front of her. She was about to beat Yugi for the first time in years at his favorite game.

"Not so fast, Ava," the young man smiled, flipping over his face down cards. "You've forgotten about my hidden cards. I activate Spellbinding Circle, stopping your Dark Magician Girl in her tracks and the card Magic Formula to boost my Magician's Attack power by 700, defeating your Dragon Rider and taking away your remaining life points."

Ava Knight groaned loudly and dropped her head heavily on the table with an audible '_thunk'_. Her messy, red-tipped brunette hair shielded her face from view as she playfully pouted her loss. She glanced up at him through her bangs, cerulean eyes demanding an answer from her friend. "It's not fair, Yuge. How come you always win? I don't think I've beaten you in a game of Duel Monsters since we were ten!"

Yugi laughed and scratched the back of his head, not really having a response. "I'm not sure, Ava. I just put my faith in my cards and somehow I pull off a win. The key is keeping a level head even when things are tough. You know what Grandpa always says, 'It's not over-"

"-until the last card is played,'" Ava finished with him. "Yeah, I know. I do have faith in my cards, and I am proud that this is the closest I've gotten to beating you in a long time." As she spoke, Ava stacked up her cards neatly and tucked them into the pocket of her dark grey jacket that she wore over her pink Domino High uniform blazer over a white blouse with a bright blue bow around her neck and a matching blue skirt that only came to the tops of her knees that all of the girls at the high-school wore. Not only was the outfit absolutely hideous, but it made her very self-conscious as well, especially when she sat down. She always wondered if people could see very high up her skirt and were either just too embarrassed or perverted to tell her.

"I know! You're a really good duelist. You had me worried there for a while. Who knows, maybe you'll win our next match if you keep playing like that," Yugi stood up, his deck already safely put away in his dark blue school blazer thrown over a white shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He slung his black and white backpack over his shoulder and started walking towards the door, "Now, come on, we've gotta get going before we're late for school."

"Right!" Ava scooped up her own red and black bag before heading out with Yugi. "Bye, Grandpa! Love you!" She shouted over her shoulder as she sprinted out the door not waiting to hear a reply from the elderly man. She squealed uncomfortably as the cool rain poured down on her head. She cursed herself for not being smart enough to grab an umbrella unlike Yugi.

"Hey, Yugi! Wait up! I'm getting soaked!" Yugi paused and turned to face Ava, his own black umbrella poised over his head. He laughed at his friend's perturbed expression when she finally reached him. Like the gentleman he was, Yugi held out his umbrella to Ava and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to keep her close to him. He stood only a few inches taller than her height of 5'4, but he was still considered short for his age. But despite his height, he still was a kind and supportive friend to everyone and always went out of his way to help others.

He was always so protective of her -border lining the extreme at times- even more so after they received their Millennium Items eight years ago after her father died in the expedition that retrieved them. While Yugi worked on his new Millennium Puzzle, Ava was given the Millennium Band, a small golden ring that didn't quite fit properly at first, so she wore it on a chain around her neck until her hands were big enough for it to fit. The Band had an inscription on it that Solomon hadn't been able to translate, but he still felt like it should belong to her. One night a couple of months ago, Yugi finally completed his Millennium Puzzle and came rushing into Ava's bedroom, excited to show her. She had never told him, but a minute before Yugi ran in to see her, her Millennium Band glowed and heated her skin, it illuminated her whole room, bathing it in light, but as quickly as it came, it left, leaving her alone in the dark, but not for long because a split-second later, Yugi came bursting in. After owning her Millennium Item for so many years, she was still no closer to understanding it than when she first received it.

She twisted her ring around her finger, one of her many nervous habits she'd developed, leaning closely to Yugi as they slowly trekked through the rain towards school. Lately, she had been feeling closer to Yugi than usual, like something between them had changed, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She snapped out of her musing when Yugi started speaking.

"I'll be teaching Joey how to play Duel Monster's today. He said he just built a deck and wanted to play against me."

"He's definitely gonna have his work cut out for him," Ava muttered as they climbed the steps of the school and tried in vain to shake out some of the water from her white and red sneakers. Yugi closed up his umbrella and jostled the excess water off before holding the door open.

Yugi chuckled, ruffling his hair. "We'll see. Who knows? Maybe he'll be as fast as a learner as you are. We can talk about this later, but now, we're late for our first class!"

"Alright, it's your turn, Joey," Yugi said after placing his card face down, ending his turn. His best friend, Joey Wheeler sat across from him, staring intently at his cards while he grumbled thoughtfully, occasionally brushing his shaggy honey-blonde hair from his eyes. He, like all of the other males at Domino High wore the typical jeans and dark blue blazer, but he pushed the sleeves up to his elbows in an attempt to rebel a little against the strict dress-code guidelines.

The small group of friends sat in the mostly vacant classroom. Students were just beginning to file in from their lunch break, but there was still plenty of time before the bell rang. Ava sat at her own desk beside Yugi's and turned around to face him as he instructed Joey through the rules as they battled. The blonde was busy taking his time deciding which monster he wanted to throw down into the battle. He studied his cards intently, trying to determine which would be his best bet. His brow furrowed in concentration as he pondered and Yugi just sat across from him patiently waiting for his friend's turn to end.

"Hey guys, what's going on? Aw, isn't Joey cute when he's thinking?" a deep voice called from behind them. Tristan lumbered up behind Joey and wrapped his strong-arm around Joey's neck in a headlock, effectively ruining his concentration on the game. Tristan was much taller than any of his friends and his brunette hair gelled into a single spike only added to his height.

"Will ya knock it off?" Joey smiled tersely with a vein pounding on the side of his head. "Yugi here is teaching me how to play Duel Monsters."

Tristan blinked incomprehensibly, his strong arms still locked around his buddy's neck. "Drool Monsters?" He asked, mishearing.

The vein in Joey's temple pounded even more, making Ava a little nervous about his health. "It's DUEL Monsters, ya nimrod!" He said through clenched teeth. "And just watch and learn."

"What the heck is Duel Monsters?" Ava smacked Tristan upside his head and scowled at him as if he'd personally insulted her. He just looked at her with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

"Don't tell me you've never heard of it, Tristan! It's only the greatest thing ever!" She pulled out her deck of cards to show Tristan, hoping her high level cards would impress him.

"Isn't that the weird card game people have been talking about?" Tristan asked as his hazel eyes scanned all the cards, their impressive stats completely lost on him. "Seems kinda stupid if you ask me." Ava groaned loudly and began explaining the basics of Duel Monsters to Tristan, who by the end of it, seemed even more confused than before.

"Neh, just shut up and watch," Joey growled, slapping a card down on the table with a triumphant grin. Ava fought the urge to sigh. It only had 600 ATK points. "Take a look at that, Yugi! Check out my card!"

"Nice move, Joey! That's a good monster," Yugi praised his friend, before laying his favorite card down."But I think I'll attack...with this, my Dark Magician."

"EEH? What?! How can you play such a powerful card and have no facial expression?" Joey exclaimed boisterously, slamming his hands down on the table in shock.

"Don't feel too bad, Joey. I've battled against Yugi for years and haven't beaten him since we were kids." Ava helpfully chimed in. "He's just a really good opponent."

"Well, I don't know about that," Yugi rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly at the praise. He was always so humble and downplayed his own strengths and talents like he didn't truly believe he deserved the recognition. He was always so meek and humble. "I've just got some pretty awesome cards thanks to Grandpa and his game shop. He taught me and Ava everything he knows about Duel Monsters."

Ava wrapped her arms around Yugi's shoulders and playfully mussed his hair, earning her a half annoyed/ half amused growl. He swatted her hands away and smoothed his hair back into place with a mock glare sent in her direction. "And yet, somehow, you still beat me every single time. I swear you're cheating, Yugi," Ava winked.

"Say, Yuge, think we could stop by your grandpa's shop sometime?" Joey pleaded, widening his dark brown eyes like a puppy and clasped his hands underneath his chin. His lower lip trembled theatrically causing Ava and Tristan to roll their eyes at his antics.

"I don't see why not," Yugi shrugged. "We could stop by after school today, if you'd like?"

"Maybe he'd even show you his ultra rare card!" The boys all laughed at Ava's enthusiasm as she clapped her hands excitedly. She felt a brief, small flash of warmth run from her fingertips along her right hand for a split second, like someone and squeezed it comfortingly, but it vanished so quickly, she wondered if she'd imagined it.

"Miss Knight would you please settle down and return to your seat?" Their middle-aged teacher requested as he walked into the room causing the younger girl to blush slightly at being caught.

"Yes, Mr. Mori," Ava sat down quickly. When the teacher had his back turned, she chucked a wadded up piece of paper at Joey's head when he wouldn't stop snickering under his breath. She barely paid Mr. Mori any attention because she was too busy thinking about seeing Grandpa's card in just a few short hours.

The group of friends all but bolted from the classroom when the last bell rang. Joey in the lead followed closely behind by Ava, then Yugi and Tristan brought up the rear at a steady jog. Eventually, Joey and Ava slowed down enough for their friends to catch up. Joey attempted to hide his heavy panting brought on by his flat-out sprinting, and failed miserably. His cheeks, flushed pink with exertion and beads of sweat dotted his forehead.

"Okay…runnin' in this humidity is a bad idea," He decided as he held his knees for support while he wheezed. "I'm starting to think that I need to cool it a bit."

Tristan scoffed. "You just don't want to admit how badly out of shape you are, unlike myself." He puffed out his chest and flexed his biceps theatrically, earning him a second smack across the back of his head from Ava, whom had grown tired of his childish behavior.

"You showing off your 'manliness' is almost _not_ annoying." Tristan's chest deflated comically and he dropped his arms down to his sides, his bravado extinguished.

"So guys, did ya hear about Téa?" Joey inquired. "She got accepted to that dance school in America that she was talking pretty much nonstop about. Certainly explains why we hadn't seen her around school much lately. I don't know about you guys, but I'm proud of her."

"I am too, Joey. It's not every day you move so far away to achieve your dream, is it?" Yugi smiled. "Still, I am going to miss her even if we didn't know her very well. She was always very nice to all of us."

"A little too peppy for my taste," Ava muttered under her breath. Her cheeks flushed red when she noticed that Yugi had heard her mumbling. Before he got a chance to ask what she meant by that, Ava redirected the conversation away from herself. "Look, guys. Here's Grandpa's shop."

"Whoa! Now this I gotta check out!" Joey rubbed his palms together with a mischievous gleam in his eye. Ava barely managed to get inside the shop before Joey rushed in after her, already scanning the display cases for the best cards. "Ooh! I that one and that one and that one…" he rambled on, pointing to practically every monster card with an attack power greater than 1500. His friends all laughed loudly at the sight of Joey's face pressed flush against the glass cases.

"Hey, Grandpa, we're home!" Yugi called through the building. A moment later, a short, elderly man with violet eyes resembling those of his grandson, and spiky, silver hair secured underneath a golden-yellow bandana stepped out of the back room. He smiled brightly when he saw his grandchildren and their friends.

"Ah, Yugi and Ava! I see you brought home some friends as well. They're not planning to eat all the food in my refrigerator, are they? I've already got two hungry teenagers; I doubt I can handle four."

"No, but Joey here," Ava waved a hand at the blonde who hurriedly stood at attention and began to discreetly wipe at the smudges his face and fingertips made on the glass display cases. "is learning to become a Duelist, and we were hoping you could show him your ultra rare, special card."

"What's that? My card?" Solomon Mutou scratched at his silver bearded chin in thought. He looked away for a second in thought. It didn't seem like he was going to trust anyone enough to allow them to see his treasured card. Or…he was just keeping them in suspense for his own amusement. Judging my his sly grin, it was the latter.

"Pretty please, Grandpa?" Yugi stepped forward with his hands clasped in front of him and a wide, hopeful grin stretched across his face. He widened his violet eyes for effect and that seemed to do the trick. Solomon let out a loud belly laugh, as he stepped behind the counter and pulled a small, brown chest from the pocket of his forest green overalls.

"Oh, alright. You kids are in for a real treat! Here it is," He pulled the lid off, reached his hand in, and gingerly plucked the card from the deep blue interior, holding it up for everyone to see. "This is my super rare treasure: the Blue Eyes White Dragon. This card is so rare and powerful, I never let it leave my hands!"

The three out of the four teenagers loud out an audible, "Whoa!". Meanwhile, Tristan plucked the card from Solomon's hand and was looking at it from all angles, trying to understand why his friends were so awed by it. "I don't get why this is such a big deal. I mean, it's cool and all, but it's just a card."

Grandpa quickly snatched his card back and held it to his chest protectively while turning his back to Tristan in fear the younger man might try to take it from him again. "There's only four of them in the whole world. This one isn't even for sale and will never be. It's priceless!"

Yugi and Ava shared an amused look. It was always funny when Grandpa pulled out his Blue Eyes because he was almost as defensive over that card as he was his own grandchildren. It truly was his most valuable possession. And Joey made the mistake of reaching for it, asking if he could hold it, to which Grandpa completely ignored him and placed the card back in its box without returning the lid in case his grandchildren or their friends wanted to look at his treasure a little bit longer. Before Joey could argue about why Solomon should allow him to at least hold the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon, the bell over the game shop entrance jingled invitingly.

"Welcome to Solomon's Game Shop," Grandpa greeted cheerfully. "Can I help you?"

"If you can't, it certainly wouldn't surprise me," a cold voice sneered. The newcomer was just a few years older than Yugi with short, light brown hair that hung partially over his steel-blue eyes. He carried a silver briefcase in his left hand and sauntered in with an air of authority and arrogance. The way his ice cold eyes surveyed the place made Ava on edge and she took an instant disliking to him.

"Seto Kaiba?!" Yugi exclaimed loudly."What's the head of Kaiba Corporations doing in a place like this?"

Seto Kaiba was the world's youngest CEO and quite possibly the wealthiest thanks to his investments in the gaming industry. He was very tall for his age, several inches taller than Tristan, and the way he carried himself with such confidence and power frightened away any opposition that could arise in his company. His chestnut colored hair was long enough to cover the nape of his neck and slightly obscure his eyes from view unless you were standing in front of him. This was a man who didn't play; he was all about power and intimidation and he knew exactly how to use both.

Kaiba smirked cruelly as if they were all lowly commoners beneath him. "Not that it's any of you pathetic losers' business, but I'm here to see the card you were so enthusiastic about earlier. But an ultra rare card in this miserable little dump is almost laughable."

"You're into duel monsters? That's awesome! Maybe we could all duel together!" Joey enthusiastically suggested. But his enthusiasm drained from him when Kaiba scoffed scornfully and all but shoved him to the side, like he was nothing more than a fly buzzing in his ear.

"Me duel you? I'd have more of a challenge playing Solitaire. I am the number one ranked duelist in the country and the favorite to win the championship. Heh, you wouldn't last two minutes in a duel against me. Now, go curl in a corner, you pathetic little dog."

Ava stepped out from behind Yugi and got up in Kaiba's face, not really noticing or caring that he stood well over a foot taller than she did. He insulted her friend and she wasn't going to take that sitting down. "Hey, you pompous peacock! Just because you somehow bribed your way to the number one slot, doesn't give you the right to act like a total jack-ass to my friends!" She poked his chest for emphasis between words. Apparently, being stood up to by a complete nobody was a sore spot for him. Kaiba grabbed Ava's wrist in his iron grip and twisted just enough to cause pain, and send a message. His eyes turned hard, scrutinizing her and sending a message: _"Don't cross me or you'll regret it."_

"Look, I don't know who you think you are, little girl, but standing up to me is probably the worst idea you could ever have, but I'm willing to overlook your stupidity just this once; so I suggest you back off before you really make me angry." He growled, shoving Ava back and releasing her wrist. She stumbled back into Yugi, who caught her with ease and stared up at Kaiba with hard eyes, but no visible anger on his face. Ava felt another flash of heat spread across her hand, but this time, it travelled up her arm in an almost protective embrace.

"Now, does this shop have any cards that are actually worth my while?" Kaiba smirked, his cold eyes sweeping over the cases quickly. His gaze landed on Grandpa's treasured card sitting in its small box and his mouth dropped open a little in shock. He shoved his way past the four teenagers, ignoring the indignant shouts and placed his hands on the counter on either side of the card."Could it be? The Blue Eyes White Dragon in a dump like this?" His fingertips twitched, itching to touch the rare card, but before he could even think about it, Solomon dashed his hopes.

"Well, that's enough window shopping!" Grandpa declared, snapping the case shut and placing it back underneath the counter. "Is there anything else I can help you with today?" His tone, which was normally kind and cheerful, was hard and distrustful and he fixed his amethyst eyes on the young CEO in a small glower, telling him to finish his business and leave. After all, he did just hurt his adopted granddaughter and that was something that wouldn't be easily forgiven.

Kaiba audibly growled and violently slammed his silver briefcase on the countertop, popping the locks open quickly and spun it around the face the elder man, whose enthusiasm went up when he saw that the case was full of powerful and rare cards, but not a single one of them was as powerful or rare as his Blue Eyes White Dragon. Yugi, Ava, Joey, and even Tristan all gasped when their eyes landed on the vast amount of rare cards stacked neatly in the velvet-lined case. "Listen here, old man. Give me your Blue Eyes and you can have every card in this case." He offered with a pretentious grin, as if his offer was too good for anyone in their right mind to refuse. But Grandpa did just that.

"These cards are all nice, but no thanks." He smiled, ignoring the dumbstruck looks on everyone else's faces. The older man seemed proud of his decision and crossed his arms comfortably over his chest. Kaiba snarled, not understanding why his offer had been refused. The card he had spent years searching for was right there in front of him, within reach and he wasn't going to leave this place without it. Another idea hit him, and he leaned in a bit closer to make his offer.

"Fine, if you won't trade for it, perhaps you'll sell it. Name your price, old man. I can pay anything you could ask for."

"I'm sure you could. But this card is more valuable to me than anything you could ever offer. Not because of its strength or rarity, but because of what it means to me. This card was given to me by a very dear friend, so I treasure this card as I do that friend. Parting with it is completely out of the question, Mr. Kaiba." The rich man's hands shook with barely contained fury.

"See, Kaiba, Grandpa would feel the same if it were a card as common and weak as Kuriboh," Yugi said wisely. "It doesn't matter the rarity or strength of the card, but what does matter is how you feel about the person who gave you the card and how well you treat it shows how well you'd treat that person."

"You're absolutely right, Yugi. I can't and won't part with this precious card because it has bonded with my heart. So thank you for the offers, Kaiba, but I'm not interested." Ava wrapped her arms around her grandfather's neck, proud of his resolution to Kaiba's persistent offers and not crumbling under the pressure as many people would have. She pressed a gentle kiss to his weathered cheek and turned to smirk up at Kaiba's infuriated face.

Kaiba forcefully slammed his briefcase shut and stepped away from the display case, heading toward the front door. He wrenched the door open and turned to leave, but not without scoffing at the old man's stupidity. "Fine! I've heard enough of this garbage, you senile old fool!" Then he stalked out of the shop, making sure to slam the door behind him, rattling the building, before he hopped into his limo and sped off down the road, seething.

And even though Kaiba couldn't see it, Ava still flipped the pretentious, spoiled brat off, earning loud guffaws from Joey and Tristan, an eye roll from Yugi, and a gentle scolding from Grandpa, but his eyes glimmered with mirth. She just shrugged like it was no big deal."I'm not gonna say sorry. You always taught me not to lie, Grandpa," Ava locked up the shop and flipped the _'OPEN'_ sign to _'CLOSED' _before rubbing her hands together readily. "Now, what say we make some dinner and forget all this mess?"

"I sure hope Gramps has some cool cards today!" Joey said as the group walked home from school the following day. Ava was currently riding piggyback on Yugi's back, her head on top of his while she ran her fingers though his hair. He was only two inches taller than she was, but he was plenty strong enough to carry her light frame on his back with ease.

"I just hope he's got dinner cooking! I'm starved!" Ava moaned dramatically. Yugi laughed loudly and craned his neck to look up at her incredulously.

"Didn't you eat like an hour and a half ago? How can you be so hungry already?"

"What can I say? I'm a growing girl. I have needs that must be fulfilled," she stated, sliding off his back once they'd reached the game shop. She patted her stomach to emphasize her point. "Hey, Grandpa! We're back for more food!"

"And we came to get new cards!" Joey added, shooting Ava a bemused look. Everyone's brows furrowed when they received no reply from the friendly old man. They all spread out to look for him (Tristan and Joey taking the downstairs, and Yugi and Ava checking out the upstairs loft where they lived) but they found no sign of him.

"Maybe… he went out to buy some groceries?" Tristan suggested once they regrouped back in the shop. Yugi was sitting behind the counter, his chin in his hands while Joey and Tristan sat in stools along the wall beside the phone, both of them watching Ava pace back and forth. It was easy to see how concerned she was. After all, Grandpa never went out unexpectedly without at least calling either her or Yugi or without leaving a note somewhere. The warm feeling she was beginning to get accustomed to crept up her hand from her Millennium Item, relaxing her slightly. They all visibly jumped when the phone's shrill ringing split the tense silence.

"I'll get it," Yugi volunteered, quickly snapping to attention. "It could be Grandpa calling to tell us why he's late. Hello, Solomon's Game Shop."

Ava couldn't hear the other voice very well, but she felt a rush of cold roll through her when Yugi's posture stiffened. His fingers gripped the phone so hard, his knuckles turned white, not that he noticed or cared. A cold feeling of dread washed over him as he listened to the voice on the other end.

"Kaiba?! What have you done with my Grandpa?" Yugi demanded forcefully. At the mention of their rival's name, Joey, Tristan, and Ava all bolted up, immediately demanding to know what he'd done with the older man. Yugi shushed them with a wave of his hand, dismissing their words so he could pay attention to Kaiba. Ava snatched the phone from Yugi's hand and held it up to her ear.

"Listen to me, you pretentious bastard, I swear that if you've hurt my grandfather in any way, I'm going to castrate you with a rusty saw!" She hissed venomously. She had her back turned to her friends, so she didn't see the blood drain from the three male's faces and their hands went between their legs protectively. Joey leaned over to whisper in Tristan's ear,

"Remind me never to get on her bad side." to which the taller man nodded his agreement.

Kaiba chuckled darkly, as if she was just a small dog that was yapping harmlessly at his heels. _"Well, if it isn't the little girl. Your pointless threats don't frighten me any more than you do. You're nothing more than a pathetic, little child trying to act big and tough," _Kaiba sneered, taunting her. _"As I was telling Yugi just a moment ago, your grandfather is here visiting me, but he isn't feeling too well. You and Yugi need to come by my office to pick him up. But I suggest you hurry; he isn't looking the greatest… Guess, I'll be seeing you and Yugi very soon, little girl."_ There was bit of shuffling on the other line and a soft _'click'_ signaling that the line had gone dead, and Ava was left standing the middle of the game shop, gripping the phone with white knuckles, unequivocally livid.

With a roar, she slammed the phone down onto the receiver and began storming towards the exit, only to be blocked by Joey, holding his hands out so she couldn't pass. Her indigo eyes flashed furiously at being halted, causing his stance to falter for a split second. She felt a pair of hands grab her shoulders from behind, but she instantly recognized them belonging to Yugi and relaxed somewhat. Tristan stayed back, away from Ava's temper, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire. He had to admit, though, that seeing a woman stand up for herself and loved ones so fearlessly was terrifying and a force to be reckoned with.

"Ava, Yuge, what the heck is goin' on? Where's Gramps and what's Kaiba got to do with him?" Joey demanded, also worried for the old man. Both of them had an anxious, but determined gleam in their eye, and if he were honest, he was genuinely thankful not to be on the receiving end of it. He may not know Gramps very well, but he was a part of Yugi and Ava's family, and he would fight for them against anyone who stood in their way. Even a rotten, selfish, conniving scum-bag like Seto Kaiba.

"Kaiba said Grandpa is at his office…and that he isn't doing well and needs us," Ava said through clenched teeth. "Now get out of my way so I can go rip Kaiba's balls off!" She tried to take a step, but was held back by Yugi's strong hands still clamped firmly to her shoulders He gave them a reassuring squeeze.

"Ava, we need to head to Kaiba Corp and focus on helping Grandpa instead of revenge. He's trying to goad us into fighting him; we can't stoop to his level," Yugi stepped in front of Ava, looking her in the eye. He turned his friend to face him, knowing how her temper flared. She needed to calm down before they went charging headfirst into a situation they weren't prepared for. He waited until she stopped resisting him before releasing her shoulders. "I know that what he's done is wrong, but Grandpa wouldn't want us maiming anyone and making enemies. But still, we can't let him get away with this either. Let's go get Grandpa back."

**Well, there it is. Chapter one of Puzzled Journey is now complete! I will try to update as often as possible, but it still takes a lot to write these things, so bear with me! This will be a four part series and I hope you'll be willing to stick with it! **

**Also, I drew the cover art in October of 2013 so please don't plagiarize it. **

**Let me know what you thought of it! PM me if you have any desire to learn any spoilers and leave a review telling me what you thought! **


	2. Power Within

The group of friends sprinted towards Kaiba Corp headquarters, fueled by adrenaline and worry. Ava was the fastest of the four of them and had a good three meter lead on them. If it weren't for the concern she had for her adoptive grandfather, she'd have focused on her fury towards none other than Seto Kaiba. She had a gut feeling that this was all a trap for him to get his greedy, little hands on Grandpa's rarest card; the thought made her despise him even more. Who would go through all of this for one stupid card? There were three others out in the world, right? Why couldn't he just go search for them and leave her and her family alone?

When they reached Kaiba Corp, Ava didn't even bother slowing down to wait for the few people exiting to get out of her way. Instead, she shoved past them and barreled through the doors, her eyes already set on the elevators. She jabbed at the UP button so many times, her finger began to hurt by the time it arrived. Ava didn't even notice that her friends were even with her until Joey put his hand on her should, startling her. The elevator ride was tense and uncomfortable while she clenched and unclenched her fists, leaving little crescent shaped indentations in her palms due to the force her fingernails were digging in.

The elevator arrived at the top floor which was just a wide room with a set of double doors at the far end of the room, the door opened with a quiet _'ding'_ and everyone on it gave a collective gasp.

"Grandpa!" Yugi and Ava shouted simultaneously, running from the lift and kneeling at his side. Ava's eyes shone with unshed tears at the sight of her grandfather lying face first on the ground completely isolated from anyone. Who knows how long he'd been laying there. Her hatred for Kaiba intensified as Yugi struggled to help the older man up. Grandpa could only managed to sit up, leaning on his elbows for support, his amethyst eyes showing pain as he gazed at his grandchildren.

Sweat beaded the old man's forehead as he tried to catch his breath. His breathing sounded shallow and wheezy. "Yu-Yugi, I failed. I wanted… to teach that boy a lesson in the Heart of the Cards, but I lost." His elbows couldn't support his weight any longer and he collapsed back onto the floor with a soft groan.

The door at the far end of the room opened, flooding the room with a bright light and illuminating the silhouette of the figure standing in the doorway. The tall figure's posture oozed the smug confidence that only came with power. His arms were crossed loosely over his chest as he sneered down at the pathetic losers on the floor in front of him.

"How's the old man feeling, hmm?" he inquired with a sly grin.

"Kaiba!" Ava snarled, jumping to her feet in defense of her family, glaring daggers at the young CEO. Just seeing his arrogant face made her blood boil. Joey stepped in on her behalf before she could do or say anything that she might later regret. The blonde man's fists were clenched in rage.

"Kaiba, you filthy sleaze! What the hell have you done to him?"

Kaiba smirked triumphantly, not even the least bit fazed by Joey's anger. "He and I had a duel, is all," Kaiba smirked triumphantly, like the man lying in pain on his floor was nothing. Which to him, he may not have been. "Each o f us put up or most valuable card as the prize. But I guess playing against a champion such as myself proved to be too much simulation for the old fool."

The only thing that kept Ava from attacking Kaiba was the fact Tristan had enough sense to grab her arms and pin them to her sides so she couldn't squirm free. "Kaiba, you bastard! You have absolutely no morals, do you? You just take what you want and trample those who stand in your way, not giving a damn about how you affect them!" Her ring was warming up against her skin as she spat insults venomously.

"It was completely fair," he shrugged. He pulled something out from the inner pocket of his jacket and showed it off, savoring the shocked expressions on everyone's faces. "And look at the sweet prize I won."

In his hands was Grandpa's treasured card: the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

He'd gone through elaborate means to get to this card after many years of searching and now, here it was in his hands. Just where it belonged. Kaiba tore his gaze from the card to smirk evilly at Yugi and Ava before taking the card in both hands…and ripping it clean in two.

The whole gang gasped loudly as the two halves of the card fluttered slowly to the floor at the feet of its destroyer. Why would he go through so much to get that card, if her was only going to shred it? The room was in a silent horror as they watched Grandpa's most treasured card completely ruined in front of them. Even Tristan's hands slipped from Ava's arms in his shock, not that she noticed.

"Grandpa's Blue-Eyes!" cried Yugi.

"Yes, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon is a very rare and powerful card," Kaiba's voice was hard; he was growing tired of watching these pathetic fools. "But now this one can never be used against me!"

Grandpa reached a shaky hand out to the shredded remains of his card as he cried out in dismay, "My…Blue-Eyes White Dragon. M-my… treasure!" He winced and suddenly dropped his arm, curling into an almost fetal position on the floor, trying to stave off the pain that was wracking his body.

Yugi held his grandfather's shoulders steady, his features were etched with concern. "Hold on, Grandpa," he pleaded, his violet eyes seemed darker now that he was on the verge of tears. It physically hurt him to see his grandfather in so much pain. He scowled up at Kaiba. "Kaiba, how could you do such a thing?!"

Grandpa reached out to his grandson with trembling hands, pushing something into his palms. "Yugi, here," his voice was strained from exertion. He fought off the unconsciousness that was playing at the back of his mind. His eyelids were heavy, but he forced them to remain open. "Take this. I built this deck... I put my heart and soul into these cards and I taught you everything I know, Yugi. Take my cards...take them and teach Kaiba a lesson about the Heart of the Cards."

Ava knelt down beside her grandfather. "We can duel later. Right now you need help, and we need to get you to a doctor." Yugi nodded his agreement.

"Ava's right. You're more important than Duel Monsters, Grandpa."

Seto scoffed, stepping off of the step leading up to the door. "Sounds like a pathetic excuse," he fixed his icy eyes on Yugi and smirked cruelly. "Your little group of friends here can take care of the old man... while you and I duel. Unless you're afraid, that is."

Yugi grit his teeth in anger, his muscles taut. He hated the idea of leaving his grandfather to participate in a game when he was needed. Kaiba needed to be taught a lesson, but that could wait. All he really cared about at this moment was getting him, his grandfather and his friends as far away from here as possible where'd they'd all be safe. Just as he was about to refuse again, Joey's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Take him down, Yugi!" Yugi turned to look at his friend in confusion. "We'll take care of Gramps while you deal with that creep over there. Teach that overly spoiled brat what a real duel is all about!"

"Go on, Yuge. We've got Grandpa taken care of. He'll be on his way to the hospital before your duel even starts," Tristan assured him. Yugi looked at each of his friends and saw encouragement and resolution shining brightly in their eyes. He was still unsure about accepting, feeling like he should be there for his grandfather, but Ava sensed his doubt.

"Yugi, you listen and you listen good. Grandpa will be alright. We're gonna be taking care of him, but you need to kick this guy's ass before he gets a chance to do this to anyone else. You're the best duelist there is and you know it. Now quit thinking about it and get your butt in there!"

The boost of confidence was exactly what Yugi needed. He gave a determined nod and stood from his crouch. Hearing those words of encouragement gave him hope. He knew they were right and with their support, he would battle Kaiba and win. "Alright, I'll do it! I accept your challenge, Kaiba!"

"It's about time. I was beginning to wonder if I would be dueling your little girlfriend over there instead. She wouldn't be much of a challenge, but still, crushing that bossy attitude of hers would be very satisfying. Maybe she'd actually learn to shut up, " Kaiba rolled his eyes and turned his back to Yugi, leading the way into the room he'd come from earlier. His little barb at Ava ignited something in him: determination. "Now, follow me to the dueling arena."

As Yugi trailed behind Kaiba, Ava was busy calling 119 from her phone and requesting an ambulance as Tristan hoisted Grandpa up on to his back to carry him down to the lobby where the paramedics would be shortly. Ava had already planned to go with Grandpa to the hospital, but Joey stopped her before she could climb back in the elevator.

"Ava, we've got Gramps. You need to get in there and cheer Yugi on so he doesn't feel like he's all alone in there with that creep. Dueling that guy is bad enough, but no one needs to be by themselves in there," he could see she was about to argue and cut her off. "Yugi needs someone and I can't cause I need to help Tristan with Gramps. Stop arguing and get in there because I want you to be able to tell me all about how he wiped the floor with Kaiba."

Ava nodded and turned on her heel to chase after Yugi, who was in for a duel that would change everything.

As Ava made her way to the dueling arena, Kaiba was already making himself comfortable in the red platform on the left side of the duel stadium, leaving the blue one for Yugi. As they climbed in and waited for the platforms to unfold and extend, Yugi felt his nerves beginning to get the best of him. He shook his doubts away, not wanting Kaiba to already have the upper hand on him. Sure, he'd never face the champion before now, but he had to have faith that he would be the winner of this duel.

"I designed this virtual stadium myself. Impressive, hm?" Kaiba boasted, seeming very impressed with himself. He crossed his arms confidently, watching Yugi try to take in his surroundings. The room itself was very large and could comfortably seat at least two hundred people in the stone bleachers that lined the perimeter of the room. The ceiling was extremely high, giving room for all of the tall statues standing resolute in the corners. Electronic columns surrounded the arena, displaying the duelists life points. In the middle of the floor, it was dark green with white gridlines criss-crossing over the surface. If he were being honest, this place was very impressive…and intimidating.

"I think you'll agree with me," continued Kaiba, "That it adds a bit more…_life_ to the game. Now, we each begin with 2000 life points. First player to hit zero loses."

Ava arrived just in time to hear Kaiba taunting Yugi, trying his best to intimidate his younger opponent. "Are you ready to play, runt?" His cold, blue eyes danced victoriously. In his mind, he had this duel already won. After all, he was battling this small kid who was in way over his head and there was no way he'd be going easy on him.

Yugi stepped forward with an unknown rush of confidence and furrowed his brown in determination. "Playtime is over, Kaiba!" With that last word, a blinding, golden light emerged from his Millennium Puzzle and completely shrouded him from view. At that same moment, Ava's Millennium Band began glowing with the same intensity, temporarily blinding her. Her body was filled from the tips of her toes to the crown of her head with a comforting heat, causing sparks to run along every nerve in her body. Suddenly, she felt more alive…more energized…like some unknown need within her had been filled.

The lights died down and Yugi stood with more courage and confidence than he'd ever had before. His hand was lazily against his hip, looking completely at ease up there on that platform. He felt as if he could duel circles around Kaiba rather than feeling like running away. And from the look on the young CEO's face, it seemed like he would be able to do just that.

Ava placed a hand over her rushing heart and alternated between looking up and Yugi and down at her Millennium Band. What had just happened? Surely, she didn't imagine that. A quick glance at Kaiba's stunned expression (something she took great joy in witnessing) and she knew all of that had really happened. Not much was known about Yugi's Puzzle and even less was known about her own Item, but whatever just happened, she was glad it did. Yugi's resolve had strengthened. Now, Kaiba wasn't going to know what had hit him.

"Now, Kaiba," Yugi said with a deep sense of authority, holding up his grandfather's deck of cards. "Prepare yourself, because it's time to duel!"

**LP: Yugi: 2000/ Kaiba: 2000**

"Virtual systems, ready," Kaiba called loudly, activating the dueling platform they hovered above. He and Yugi both quickly shuffled their decks and placed them on the dueling station in front of them then each drew five cards to start the game off.

"Let's begin." Kaiba said, placing his chosen card on the electronic dueling mat laid out in front of him on a giant dashboard with a monitor on the top half of it, showing the opponents side where they would lay their cards down. Kaiba's side of the field shimmered an eerie green as the virtual system activated. "I attack with the mighty Hitotsu-Me Giant! Brace yourself, little Yugi. You've never dueled like this before."

The glowing of the grid transformed into a column of green sparks floating down to the field. A beast's silhouette flashed for a moment before a the Hitotsu-Me Giant came face-to-face with a wide-eyed Yugi Mutou. The virtual graphics made the creature's green skin and single red eye seem so life-like.

"What the hell is that?!" exclaimed Ava from her view on the ground. There was no was this thing was real. Monsters weren't real, but the Hitotsu-Me Giant bellowed loudly, making much more difficult to convince anyone that he wasn't real.

Yugi took a step back in surprise, not really understanding what his eyes were telling him. "He's brought the monster on the card to life!"

"That is the work of my virtual simulator," said Kaiba. "It creates life-like holograms of every monster, spell and trap card in Duel Monsters once it's played on the field."

Realization dawned on Yugi and he sent a sharp glare to Seto. This is how his grandfather was beaten and why he had been so weak. "This is how you beat my grandfather," he accused with a growl. Drawing his first card, he held it up for Kaiba to see. "You will not get away with this. I call forth the Winged Dragon Guardian of the Fortress!" He quickly laid his card down on his side of the mat and observed his creature coming to life in the green light raining down. A large, bright blue, cartoonish dragon with pointed white teeth appeared, stretching its wings out in a threatening manner.

The Hitotsu-Me Giant rushed in for its attack, but what exactly what Yugi had been waiting for. "Fireball attack!" he roared, ushering his dragon into battle. The blue beast reared its head back and blasted the giant with a bright fireball. It collided with Kaiba's monster directly in the chest and shattered it into dozens of holographic pieces. The bright holographic fire from Yugi's counterattack was so intense that both Ava and Kaiba shielded their faces. Ava was stunned by the level of graphics Kaiba had put into this machine. It even simulated the heat of the fire without actually burning anyone.

**LP: Yugi 2000/ Kaiba: 1800**

While Kaiba's life points diminished, a small, young boy with long, shaggy, jet-black black hair and silvery purple eyes came bursting in to one of the balconies behind Kaiba. "Big brother!" his voice full of worry. "Are you alright?" Ava stared at the two boys in shock. She didn't know Seto had a younger brother. They didn't really look anything alike. Kaiba's eyes flickered down to his little brother for a split second and just for a brief moment, they softened with care. It seemed Kaiba's only soft spot was his bother from what she could tell.

"Awesome move, Yuge!" Ava cheered from the sidelines tuning back to the match, a wide smile stretched across her face. She shot a big thumbs-up at her best friend, letting him know she was behind him every step of the way. She couldn't help feel a strong connection with him as he dueled. Like his confidence and hope was rubbing off on her too. Yugi turned to smile at her, but he paused in his tracks. Ava seemed to be glowing with an internal light. She looked happier than he had seen her in years. He didn't understand what had caused the change within her, but seeing her smiling so freely made his own body feel lighter somehow.

Kaiba, completely ignorant to their exchange, drew his card, completely at ease. He always enjoyed toying with his opponents, letting them believe they actually stood a chance at defeating them, then completely crushed them and their spirits once and for all. "Huh, well played Yugi," he said drawing his card. "For a beginner."

He placed another monster on the field to take place where his last beast stood. "But how will you deal with this?" he taunted as his monster took shape on the field in the familiar shower of green sparks. Yugi raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"Saggi the Dark Clown?" he questioned, trying to figure out what Kaiba was planning. "That card has hardly any attack strength." What was he thinking? Ava grimaced a little when the clown appeared. It was ugly and creepy.

"True, your Winged Dragon has an attack power of 1400 while my Dark Clown only has 600," Kaiba shrugged nonchalantly, placing a second card into play. "But if I combine it with this card…"

It was against the rules to summon more than one monster a turn unless you were specially summoning it, but that didn't seem to be the case. So that left only traps and magic cards. Since Kaiba had mentioned combining his new card with Saggi, that meant it was a-

"It's a magic card!" Ava came to the realization at the same time Yugi did.

"Exactly," Kaiba smirked, flipping the card over. The card had bright yellow and blue lightning streaking across the background with a large letter "E" dominating most of the picture. "Negative Energy Generator multiplies my monster's attack by three!"

Saggi was engulfed in a black light emanating from the magic card and instantly began to triple in size. His painted face seemed to grow even more sinister as his body expanded. Now with an attack power of 1800, he was strong enough to destroy Yugi's Winged Dragon away. "Dark Clown, attack with Dark Light!" Kaiba commanded. Saggi raised his arms high over his head and blasted a wave of dark energy into the blue dragon. Yugi's side was defenseless now.

**LP: Yugi: 1600/Kaiba: 1800  
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Ava groaned quietly, seeing Yugi's life points lower. _'C'mon, Yugi! I know you can do this. He's a good opponent, but you can beat this guy. Win for Grandpa!'_ She smiled encouragingly up at Yugi as he took a deep breath and drew his next card. His brow furrowed. Why would his grandfather have a card that was only a leg with 200 ATK? Yugi sighed quietly and placed his monster in defense mode.

"I summon Sangan in defense mode and end my turn!" Kaiba laughed at Yugi's pitiful attempt at defense with his three-eyed puffball. It was pathetic and weak compared to his powered up Saggi. The CEO commanded his monster to attack and obliterated Yugi's monster, but his life points remained at 1600.

Each turn, Yugi drew a card then placed another monster in defense mode which would then be demolished by Saggi's Dark Light attack. Monster after monster was being sacrificed to the clown, but Yugi refused to give in. He still had faith in his grandfather's cards. Kaiba, howver, was happily crushing each of Yugi's monsters one by one, savoring his almost assured victory. This little runt was just stalling, his deck was pathetic.

"You're not faring any better than the old man, Yugi. Your deck is just as weak and feeble as your grandfather," sneered Kaiba. "Why don't you just forfeit while you still have some dignity?"

Yugi grit his teeth; his amethyst eyes seemed to dance with intense conviction and determination. He was going to win this duel and nothing was going to stop him. Not even Kaiba. "My grandfather is a great and honorable man and he is a better duelist than you will ever be! He entrusted me with his cards and I can feel his heart in them."

Yugi had a steely glare set on Kaiba. "I doubt you have that kind of faith in your cards Kaiba!" The CEO's smirk faltered for a moment. There was that Heart of the Cards garbage again. When would he learn that these cards meant nothing except power?

Yugi's hand hovered over his deck, his eyes closed momentarily. With a new burst of confidence, he pulled the top card from his deck and brought it up to eye-level with a small smirk playing at his lips. "I believe in my grandpa's deck, and my faith rewards me with Gaia the Fierce Knight! With a destructive power of 2300!" He activated the card and a knight in extravagant armor sat on a bright purple steed. He held two sharp lances at the ready as his horse reared back, whinnying loudly.

"Yeah! Kick his ass, Yugi!" Ava whooped loudly from the stands, earning a sharp glare from Kaiba. She smiled sweetly and waved condescendingly up at him. Yugi's opponent turned his gaze back to the newest monster on the field, not being able to comprehend how Yugi made his comeback so easily. Gaia readied his lance and took off across the grid. The sharp lance pierced through Saggi through the abdomen, shattering him with a loud wail.

**LP: Yugi: 1600/Kaiba: 1300**

"Alright, Kaiba," Yugi smirked, crossing his arms. "Your move."

Kaiba seemed way to relaxed for someone who just had his only line of defense destroyed. He placed his hand over his deck and grinned cruelly at Yugi. "This will be over sooner than you think," He drew his card and held it up. A malicious gleam flashed through his eye.

"I call in the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" He shouted, slapping the card down on the mat. A mighty, shining white dragon materialized before their very eyes, letting out a tremendous roar that shook everyone's eardrums. The monster stretched its wings to full length, taking up a good portion of the room on Kaiba's side of the field.

"Ah! No way!" Yugi took a step back in shock, not believing his eyes. How could he have a Blue-Eyes when everyone saw what he did before the duel even started.

"What the hell?!" Ava exclaimed, staring slack-jawed at the dragon. "That's impossible! We saw you rip it in half!"

"Surprised?" Kaiba taunted smugly. "Did you think your grandfather was the only one to possess the Blue-Eyes White Dragon?" He laughed as his new beast opened his jaws and fired a large arc of blue and white lightning directly at Gaia. Yugi's knight was destroyed.

**LP: Yugi: 0900/Kaiba: 1300**

"Your pathetic Fierce Knight is destroyed," Kaiba scoffed. "Faith or no faith, you _will_ fall before my superior monster, Yugi. Power is what this game is all about, you fool! Faith is for losers, like you, your girlfriend down there, and your pathetic grandfather."

"Ava is not my girlfriend; she is a very good friend of mine and you have no right to insult my grandfather that way!" Yugi growled, putting a monster in defense mode to protect his life points. Kaiba wasn't just looking to beat Yugi in this duel; he was looking to completely crush his spirit. What was so puzzling was that in school, he never acted like this before. After drawing his card, giving a small smirk.

"If you can't stand up to one, what hope do you have against two?" The air to the left of the first Blue-Eyes shimmered and a second dragon appeared from the shower of sparks. How did Kaiba have two of them?! His victory assured, Kaiba decided to provoke Yugi just a bit more.

"Why don't you just admit defeat now, Yugi? There's not a single card in your deck that can stand up to my Blue-Eyes!"

The idea was tempting for a moment, but Yugi banished the thought before he could follow through with it. He had to see this through to the end for his Grandpa. Yugi looked down at his deck, hoping it held something that would help him out of this tight spot._ 'I can't give in. Grandpa is counting on me.'_ When his eyes landed on his newest card, his heart skipped a beat. "Swords of Revealing Light!" he cried, activating his card. Several bright white swords shot down from t he ceiling, encasing the two dragons in a cage of light, locking them in place. The magic from this card stopped all monsters on Kaiba's side of the field from attacking.

"How desperate," sneered Kaiba with a roll of his eyes. "What possible good will a three turn delay do for you?"

Ava chewed her lip in anticipation. Sure, Yugi had bought himself some time, but Kaiba's monster had 3000 ATK points each! There was a reason they were so coveted; they were supposedly unbeatable on their own, and Kaiba had two! She looked up at Yugi anxiously, hoping he would be able to pull out a winning strategy within the next three turns, or this game would be finished. Yugi drew his card and his stomach seemed to drop. Again, it was another random limb like the last two he'd managed to draw over the last few turns. What good were a punch of monster pieces against two Blue-Eyes White Dragons?

_'Don't you give in on me now, Yugi,'_ a voice that sounded suspiciously like Ava's echoed in his head. _'Remember what Grandpa always said? Sometimes the cards are like a puzzle and you need to put all the pieces in their proper place.'_

Yugi glanced down at the upside-down pyramid dangling from around his neck. _'Oh, you mean like my Millennium Puzzle'_ He remembered working on it diligently for eight years, wanting nothing more at times than to just give up and forget about it. But he persevered and kept at it, putting it back together, piece by piece.

_'Puzzles don't solve themselves, do they? Think, numbskull! Grandpa once told us about one rare, but unstoppable monster.'_ Yugi's mind flashed to a time when he was younger and his grandfather was teaching him about a few rare monsters he'd come across in his travels around the world. One being the unstoppable Exodia that could only be summoned by assembling the five pieces of the Forbidden One. He glanced down at Ava who was smiling encouragingly at her friend to which he gave a slight grin back.

Kaiba was beginning to grow impatient with the lack of response from his opponent. "Quit your stalling, Yugi, or you will forfeit the match!"

"I never forfeit!" Yyugi glared, drawing his next card. His eyes flicked to the picture and widened when he saw what it was. It was the right arm of Exodia! He only had one more piece to assemble before the ultimate monster could be summoned! Yugi placed a monster face down in defense mode and ended his turn.

"Draw any card you like, but it won't change a thing. My dragons may be frozen for another two turns, but my new monster in under no such spell!" Kaiba shouted, summoning a new monster to the field: The Judge Man; a brawny creature with spiked club in each hands with an attack power of 2200. It attacked Yugi's face down card, sending it directly to the graveyard, then it was Yugi's turn to draw again.

He cheered internally when he drew his favorite card: a spellcaster known as Dark Magician. This figure wore long, deep purple robes with a matching pointed hat, and a teal scepter with a green orb at the end was in his right hand. His ATK power was 2500 and enough to defeat Kaiba's Judge Man, but not enough to contend with the two Blue-Eyes staring him down like he were a piece of meat. Their stare was so unnerving, he had to forcibly remind himself that these were holograms and nothing more. After this turn, the Blue-Eyes White Dragons would be free to wreak havoc on his life points, but he had no choice. Yugi played his newest monster and waited for it to appear before launching his attack at the exposed monster on Kaiba's side of the arena.

"Dark Magic Attack!" Yugi called. His magician raised his left hand and sent a powerful shock wave of dark magic at the Judge Man, demolishing him and a portion of Kaiba's life points.

**LP: Yugi: 0900/Kaiba: 1000**

Kaiba sighed in mock sorrow at the loss of his monster, but it was easy to see that it was just for show. "Oh, a sacrifice that doesn't faze me at all," He picked up his next card."Though neither dragon can move for one more turn, my next card is… the third Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

How did Kaiba have the last three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in the world? Ava and Yugi couldn't believe their eyes when the third and final dragon materialized into existence and struck down Yugi's Dark Magician. Kaiba really had all three legendary dragons! But if he had already owned three of the four, why did he work so hard to obtain Grandpa's card? It was only one against his three, so why did it matter? Realization dawned on Yugi. Kaiba wanted to be the only one in the world to master the awesome power of the Blue-Eyes. He ripped Grandpa's card to pieces so no one would be able to use it against his.

Kaiba's eyes seemed to have darkened with his lust for power. "So, tell me, Yugi… where's your faith now?" He laughed at Yugi's impending defeat. "On my next turn, all three of my Blue-Eyes are free to attack you directly! This game is over no matter what pathetic card you draw!"

Was what Kaiba said, true? Yugi didn't want to believe it, but he was staring down three of the strongest monsters on the history of Duel Monsters with nothing but a few random pieces in his hand. What good would they do against the dragons? What if the card he so desperately needed was at the very bottom of his deck? Doubt began to gnaw away at the confidence he once had as the sinking feeling of despair threatened to overwhelm him. With a trembling hand, Yugi reached out to his deck, but it seemed to move further away from his hand. He gasped quietly.

"Face it, you can't possibly stand up to my Blue-Eyes. It's over, Yugi. You were never a real match for me anyway." Each word Kaiba said, chipped away at his confidence even more. Ava scowled up at Kaiba.

"Don't listen to that jerk, Yugi! You can still win this thing!" She cheered, flipping Kaiba off in the process. The brunette grit his teeth in irritation. Was there nothing that would shut her obnoxious mouth? Giving Yugi false hope was cruel, not that he was about to stop her. The higher Yugi got his hopes, the harder they would fall with his next move.

Yugi spared a fleeting glance at Ava, her wide, blue eyes encouraging him to keep fighting on. The moment he made eye contact with her, he felt something within him shift, like he wasn't alone even in his own head.

_'Listen to Ava. Don't lose focus, Yugi! Don't lose faith! Concentrate!'_ a deep voice from the back of his mind urged him, momentarily distracting him. Something told him that he should trust the unknown voice. He sounded so full of confidence.

Down on the ground, Ava saw that Yugi seemed to be having an internal battle with himself, and could've sworn she heard another voice. He sounded unfamiliar, but part of her wondered if she should know it. Concentrating back on Yugi, he seemed self-assured and ready to fight.

"Draw your last pathetic card so I can end this, Yugi! snapped Kaiba. Everything about him screamed overconfidence and arrogance in his ability to duel. He was anything _but_ and honorable duelist; that attitude would be his downfall. In his eyes, there was no conceivable way that Yugi could beat him. He has no monster son his side while Kaiba wielded three Blue-Eyes White Dragons.

"My grandpa's deck has no pathetic card, Kaiba," he said, drawing his last card. "But it does contain… the unstoppable Exodia!" Yugi flipped the card around to show Kaiba; it was the Forbidden One's head.

Ava whistled loudly from her viewing point on the ground, beaming like a madwoman up at Yugi. She felt like running up there and hugging the life out of him, but that would have to wait until the match was officially won. Her ring warmed her finger, making her feel warm and fuzzy inside. If anything, this feeling caused her smile to grow even wider to the point where it was starting to hurt her cheeks.

Kaiba stumbled back, his cobalt eyes wide in horror. "What? Impossible!" How could this be?! How was Yugi able to draw the five cards for Exodia? It seemed inconceivable that this runt even had those card in his deck in the first place!

Yugi laid out the five cards of Exodia on his dueling mat. "I've assembled all five special cards," he said, looking directly into Kaiba's eyes. "All five pieces of the puzzle."

Just then, a bright blue, ten pointed star twisted and turned onto the field. In each of the corners, a new, golden limb emerged and from the center, the massive, exotic head of Exodia, the Forbidden One appeared. Kaiba looked to be nearly quaking in fear, staring down such an enormous beast. His strategy was supposed to be unbeatable, and yet, here was the one creature on the earth that would demolish all three of his precious Blue-Eyes While Dragons. He knew that there was no way out of this. He was done for.

"Exodia!" Kaiba almost whimpered. "I-it's not possible! No one's ever been able to call him before!" When he summoned this monster, Yugi changed everything, but he didn't do it alone. Without the support of his friends (and one yet to be) Yugi had found the strength to carry on, and now it was time to end this duel.

Exodia towered over the three Blue-Eyes, eyeing them as if they were prey. Each of his wrists and ankles were bound in shattered chains. Now that he was free from his cards, there was nothing for him to be tethered to. "Exodia…" Yugi called to his mighty beast, feeling a rush of strength flow through him at the sight of this massive monster on his side. He had done it. He beat Kaiba! "Obliterate!"

Exodia thrust his hands out, summoning a giant ball of light and threw it at all three Blue-Eyes White Dragoons simultaneously. It detonated halfway into the throw and engulfed the dragons in the blinding light, demolishing them and Kaiba's remaining life points. The dragon's disappeared with tremendous wails, their holographic bodies shattering into nothingness.

**LP: Yugi: 0900/Kaiba: 0000**

"You did it, Yugi! You won!" Ava whooped loudly, pumping her fist into the air and hopping in place. She knew he'd win.

But Kaiba's little brother, who had been in the stands cheering for his older brother, seemed to be in a state of denial. "That can't be!" he exclaimed."My big brother never loses!"

"You play only for power, Kaiba, and that is why you lost," said Yugi. "But if you put your heart in the game, there is nothing you can't do." He watched as Kaiba tried to recover from the blast, but his face still held the mask of horror as he clung to the dueling mat with white knuckles. His eyes scanned the cards and life point readers numerous times, trying to figure out where hewent wrong. Surely, this was all just a bad dream.

"But…but how?" cried Kaiba, his forearms trembling. "How could I have lost to _him_?"

Yugi felt that same stronger presence from before appear again, but this time it seemed to be lending a helping hand a guiding his actions. This presence was tired of Kaiba using his power to manipulate and crush those around him. It had to end. "Kaiba," Yugi said forcefully. "If you truly want to know…open your mind!" He thrust his hand in Kaiba's direction, his voice echoing in the CEO's mind as a powerful shockwave destroyed his mental state, sending him to his knees. Exhaustion took over and he collapsed from being overcome by the dark side that had formed in his heart.

Yugi's voice softened as he addressed his rival once more. "There, Kaiba. Maybe now, you can begin to see." With that, the dueling platforms lowered from their stations allowing Yugi to hop off. He was immediately barreled into by a soft, shorter body that had enveloped him in a bone-crushing hug. He chuckled, wrapping his arms around Ava's shoulders. He suddenly felt warmer and lighter than before as he hugged her, the strength and power from earlier began ebbing away, but leaving the satisfying feeling of victory.

"Thank you, Ava," he said quietly, releasing her from the hug. He had a wide smile plastered across his face and a gleeful shine in his eye. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"Me?" Ava mock scoffed with a playful wink. "I didn't do anything except talk to you and insult rich boy over there." She inclined her head towards Kaiba who was being helped off of his podium by one of his guards. Yugi laughed, placing one hand protectively over his Millennium Puzzle. Something changed during this battle, but he wasn't quite sure what it was yet.

"What do you say we go visit Grandpa and see how he's doing?" Yugi suggested, pocketing the deck of cards. "I'm sure he'll want his cards back." The pair started walking towards the elevator, anxious to leave the building.

"That sounds awesome," Ava agreed. "But you know Joey and Tristan are going to be demanding every single detail from the both of us, right?" She asked, as the elevator began its descent.

"Yeah, I know. But to be perfectly honest, I'm not entirely sure what exactly happened in there…" Yugi muttered, looking down at his Millennium Puzzle. _'But I intend to find out.'_


End file.
